The Trailblazer Transit Joint Powers Board had a look at the preliminary 2013 budget Thursday morning, but with a caution from Director Gary Ludwig — it could change based on the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s (MnDOT) own budget.
“Trailblazer will finalize its budget after MnDOT establishes its funding levels,” said Ludwig.
MnDOT provides funding of up to 80 percent for two of Trailblazer’s programs.

The Glencoe Planning and Industrial Commission met last Thursday and swore in its newest member, Wes Olson.
Olson replaces Robert Senst, who resigned earlier this summer.
The only other item on the agenda was a variance request by Jason and Alicia Zehnder to build a garage on their property on Vernon Lane in Glenview Woods.
The variance is for a 26-by-26-foot garage that juts too far into the sideyard setback, which by ordinance is five feet. The request is for a three-foot variance from the ordinance requirement.

Jason and Jodi Kuehn of Howard Lake announce the birth of their son, Bennett Gregory, on Sept. 7, 2012, at Ridgeview Medical Center in Waconia. Bennett weighed 8 pounds and was 19 inches long. His older brother is Cooper. Grandparents are Greg and Michele Miller of Plato and Dave and Allyson Kuehn of Waconia. Great-grandparents are Bernice Breyer of Glencoe and Ken and Mary Kuehn of Underwood.

A memorial service for Timothy T. Straub, 71, of Black Hawk, S.D., will be held Saturday, Oct. 6, at 11 a.m., at the Ney Nature Center east of Henderson.
Visitation will be at the Kolden Funeral Home in Le Sueur on Friday, Oct. 5, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., and one hour prior to the services at the Ney Nature Center.
Mr. Straub died unexpectedly Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012, in Navarre Province, Spain, while on an archaeological dig.
Mr. Straub was born Nov. 16, 1940, in St. Peter, to Harold and Catherine-Lynch Straub. He graduated from Le Sueur High School in 1958.

Will passing the marriage amendment, or the voter ID amendment for that matter, improve the economy, create more jobs or get more people back to work in Minnesota? Will passing either of these amendments make the state’s budget balance? Will it improve our roads, bridges and highways? Will it make our schools better and our children better educated?
If the answer is no, perhaps you should seriously consider rejecting both of these amendments this fall.

Glencoe City Council has spoken, and as of Nov. 1 there will be no on-street parking in the community between the hours of 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. until April 1. And there will be no on-street parking on city streets during snow removal until the streets are cleared curb-to-curb, even if that comes after 6 a.m.
You have been warned. No excuses.
City Council gave its third and final reading to the “snowbird” ordinance amendment last week, but on a 3-2 vote. So not all were in agreement on this cantankerous issue.

Teddy Roosevelt said: “Speak softly, but carry a big stick.”
Ronald Reagan sent bombers over Libya to let them know that if they killed Americans, there were consequences.
From our days on the school playgrounds, we knew the best way to deal with a bully was to hit him in the belly — hard —and that got his attention.
In 1938, Britain and France attempted to give in to the Nazis and Socialists. They sought “peace in our time,” but instead ended up in the greatest war of all time.

To the Editor:
Noting the silence of Collin Peterson on his support for abortion in America, Craig Bishop, Congressional District 7 chairman, issued the following statement:
When considering the pro-life issue in the November election, please vote for Lee Byberg instead of U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., for the following reasons.